Thank you to Azalea Crowley for providing an e-ARC for me to read and review this!
3.5★ rounded up to 4★ for goodreads.
I really enjoyed reading this boThank you to Azalea Crowley for providing an e-ARC for me to read and review this!
3.5★ rounded up to 4★ for goodreads.
I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a cute cozy romance between an autistic woman and a monster who looks and talks like a man, but is definitely more than he seems. I know this is also considered horror, but -to me- it was definitely more focused on the romance than the horror (even though yeah the mmc is a monster with a big scary shadow monster as a bestie).
I enjoy the world that this story built as well as the setting, especially as someone who lived in and around Seattle for awhile. It's fun to imagine there being some sort of secret monster mafia esque thing going on in the dark alleys and cemeteries. I look forward to seeing where she takes that in the next book, but also do plan to go back and read her other series that sets this world up even more.
Now for a few things I wasn't a fan of. 1) Sometimes, it felt a bit overexplained regarding the things the autistic character was doing. I can see why the author may have felt that was necessary though because not everyone (in fact I'd say the majority of the wider public) are not familiar with the actual whats and the whys of autism and only really know it as "that guy from the big bang show" or whatever, so while it did annoy me a bit, I understand why it's there.
2) The 1920s slang is so SILLY. I'm sorry this is again, I know it's part of the character, but I could not take him seriously when I'm hearing the mid-atlantic accent and he's saying "berries!" and such. My goodness. It grew on me over time but it was a lot.
That's all I got for negatives, and, let's be honest, that second one is just a personal thing.
My final note is that, as an asexual person who tends towards sex adverse, the SCENES in this book. The way that she wrote them, especially when we hear it from Eugene's (the monster's) point of view, oh my GOODNESS. I could tell he wanted to eat her, but HOW, I was never sure. And I loved that. As a fan of monster romances, I. Loved. That. 10/10 for that.
Highly recommend, especially if you're looking for something cute, cozy, and a little creepy....more